This chapter summarizes fundamental Photoshop features, including using the main application features; configuring the panel docks; choosing the correct image size and bit depth; cropping and rotating images; applying content-aware scaling; choosing and saving colors; using the Layers and History panels; creating and using adjustment and fill layers; and creating and managing presets.

This chapter summarizes fundamental Photoshop features that you will use throughout the book. Topics include using the main application features; configuring the panel docks; choosing the correct image size and bit
depth; cropping and rotating images; applying content-aware scaling; choosing and saving colors; using the Layers and History
panels; creating and using adjustment and fill layers; and creating and managing presets.

Using the main application features

To display the Application frame (Mac OS):

To dock document windows as tabs:

To dock a floating document window manually, drag its title bar to the tab area (or to the bottom of the Application or Options bar) of the Application frame or just
below the title bar of another floating document window, and release when the blue drop zone bar appears. (If this doesn’t
seem to work, make sure Enable Floating Document Window Docking is checked in Edit/Photoshop > Preference > Interface.)

If one or more documents are already docked as tabs and you want to dock all floating document windows into the Application
frame or into the currently active document window, right-click/ Control-click a tab and choose Consolidate All to Here from the context menu.A

To set a preference so all future documents that you open will dock as tabs automatically, go to Edit/Photoshop > Preferences > Interface and check Open Documents as Tabs.

To cycle among currently open documents, press Ctrl-Tab/Control-Tab.

To use the Application bar:

Use the controls on the Application bar to manage your document windows.A In Windows, the main Photoshop menus also display on the Application bar. In the Mac OS, the Application bar is docked in
the Application frame. When the Application frame is hidden, the Application bar is docked below the main menu bar; if you
don’t see the bar, choose Window > Application Bar.

The following options are available in Edit/Photoshop > Preferences > General:

Check Animated Zoom for smooth, continuous zooming when using the Zoom tool or zoom shortcuts (OpenGL is required*).

With Zoom Resizes Windows checked, a floating document window will resize if you change the zoom level via the Ctrl/Cmd- + (plus) or Ctrl/Cmd- – (minus) shortcut or the Zoom tool.

If your mouse has a scroll wheel and you check Zoom with Scroll Wheel, you can change the zoom level by scrolling the wheel.

Check Zoom Clicked Point to Center to center the zoom view at the location you click.

Check Enable Flick Panning to move a magnified image across the screen by dragging with the Hand tool a short distance and then releasing the mouse (OpenGL is required1).

Using the Arrange Documents menu, you can quickly display multiple tabbed or floating documents in various layouts, such as
two documents side by side or stacked vertically, or four or six documents in a grid.

To arrange multiple document windows:

Click the Arrange Documents menu icon on the Application bar to open the menu, release the mouse, then click one of the icons (the availability of the icons depends
on how many documents are open).

You can just as effortlessly go back to displaying one document at a time.

To redisplay one document at a time:

On the Arrange Documents menu on the Application bar, click the Consolidate All icon (the first icon on the menu).

The screen modes control which Photoshop interface features are displayed.

To change the screen mode:

From the Screen Mode menu on the Application bar, choose Standard Screen Mode, Full Screen Mode with Menu Bar, or Full Screen Mode; or press F to cycle through the modes. Note: In Edit/Photoshop > Preferences > Interface, you can customize the background and border
colors for each screen mode.